West Bengal police returned a seven-year-old boy Ganesh, who was kidnapped from Calcutta and employed in begging by a family, to her mother Manju on 11th June’08. Ganesh has been begging in Chapra in Nadia district, 140 Km from Calcutta, for past three years. He told some local youths that he was from Kalighat (South Calcutta) and they informed the police who rescued him on 10th July.
Police arrested Piar Mondal, 25, and his mother Tuni, 54, for kidnapping the boy on 5th June, taking the advantage of inadvertence of his fruit-selling mother near the Kalighat temple. Tuni had kept Ganesh confined at their home for a few days and trained him in begging.
As per officer in-charge of Chapra Police station, Ganesh used to walk about five kilometers everyday in the morning from Mandol’s home to Chapra Bazar and used to earn about Rs.25/- to Rs.50/-per day. He also said that police were trying to find out if Piar and his mother had kidnapped others too.
Ever since the disappearance of Ganesh, his mother Manju had to stay with her mother along with her two other children as, her husband Raju accused her of selling the boy and threw her out of his house.
A weeping Manju clubbing his son said, “ My husband accused me of selling Ganesh for money and threw me out of his house. Now he would know the truth.” She hoped for the return of the happier days again with the husband.